Continuous clock winder and overwind preventer



Jan. 13, 1931. H, MElER 1,788,729

CONTINUOUS CLOCK WINDER AND OVERWIND PREVENTER Filed Feb. 16, 1928 waglfnyenlgzfe By His Af/orizqyi Patented Jan. 13, 1931 4 UNITED, STATES PATENT OFFICE KARL HEINRICH MEIER, OF ZURICH, SWITZERLAN D, ASSIGNOR ONE HAlLI TO WALTER HUSSEY, OF. AARBURG, SWITZERLAND CONTINUOUS CLOCK wnvmm AND ovnnwmn rnnvnn'rnn Application filed February 16, 1928, Serial No. 254,862, and in Switzerland J'ifcbruary 22, 1927.

This invention'relates to clocks, watches and analogous mechanisms which are actu-w ated by a niainspring which normally requires wmdmg up from time to tlme, and

5 which mechanisms will be hereinafter referred to for convenience as clocks. The object of the invention is ameans for maintaining the clock spring in the wound up condition without personal attention in places m where mechanical power may be applied for the Winding up of the spring, and my invention contemplates further the provision of an overwind preventer which will not' necessitate the declutching of the power applied for winding up the clock spring when the latter is wound up to the desired extent.

With these objects in view there are provided in combination a member for winding up the spring, a continuously moving mechanism to operate such member and a spring which presents a greater resistance to tension than that presented by the clock spring to winding upand which will thus consume the power of the continuously movingmechanism when the spring winding member can no longer receive it, owing to the full winding up to the desired extent of the clock spring having taken place. The continuously moving member operates upon a rod connecting the clock spring winding up member and the strong spring referred to, for the purpose of vibrating the said rod.

Such combination for the purposes stated may take various mechanical forms and a suitable arrangement will now be described, reference being had to the accompanying drawing which. shows, diagrammatically, the arrangement of the parts.

In the drawing, a is a reciprocating member which is reciprocated by the disc I) fitted on the spindle 61. At its upper end the member a is secured to a rod, wire, or the like 0 which has secured to it at d the spring 0 anchored at a fixed point f. The other end of member 0 is secured by any convenient means in the extremity of a lever g-fulcrumed on a shaft h which is central of a clock spring housing which may be of the usual and well known form and is therefore not shown. Pivoted to the lever g is the pawl k, and a spring Z anchoredat a fixed point m serves to return the lever 57 in'its bacliposition. The pawl engages in the teeth of a ratchet wheel n which is borne on the shaft h, movement of the lever 9 serving, through the engagement of pawl 76 and the ratchet teeth of n, to wind up the clock spring. A detent pawl 0 is provided to prevent back rotation of. the ratchet wheel a after it has been aderate a clock placed upon the dash board or.

elsewhere on the vehicle. Such means form no part of my invention. Rotation of the disc 7) causes reciprocating movement of a and as a result a pull and push are exerted upon the member 0 to vibrate the latter. The strength ofthe spring 6, that isto say its resistance to extension, is such that when the clock spring is not fully wound up to the desired extent, (Z acts as a fixed point, and any power applied by a to 0 therefore acts upon the lever g to draw it forward and thus move the ratchet wheel n to wind up the clock spring, the spring Z serving to return the lever g as the pull onthe latter is released, in readiness'for the next winding up reciprocation of the lever. On the clock spring being wound up to the desired extent, thus l offering a resistance, which is greater than the resistance of the spring (2 to extension, the power exerted by the reciprocating member a serves merely to extend and allow to relax the said spring 6.

By this provision of the lever g and its pawl 70 and the ratchet wheel n as Winding up mechanism for the clock spring, with the member a as continuously moving driving mechanism, and the provision of e as a yieldable element incorporated with the lever 9, continued rotation of the disc 6 after the clock spring is wound up to the desired exe t has no efiect on the clock spr ng, e

power applied being consumed by the yieldable element, otherwise the spring 6.

I claim In a clock spring winder and overwind preventer, a fulcrumed lever, a pawl borne by the lever, a ratchet wheel engaged by such pawl and connected with the clock spring for the winding thereof, a tension spring having greater resistance to extension than the resistance presented by the clock spring to winding up, a vibratory rod connecting the lever and tension spring, and a reciprocating member connected. to the said rod to impart continuous vibratory motion thereto.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

KARL HEINRICH MEIER. 

